Architecture of ancient Greece
The architecture of ancient Greece is the architecture produced by the Greek-speaking people whose culture flourished on the Greek mainland, the Peloponnese, the Aegean Islands, and in colonies in Anatolia and Italy for a period from about 900 BC until the 1st century AD, with the earliest remaining architectural works dating from around 600 BC.Boardman, Dorig, Fuchs and Hirmer Ancient Greek architecture is distinguished by its highly formalized characteristics, both of structure and decoration. This is particularly so in the case of temples where each building appears to have been conceived as a sculptural entity within the landscape, most often raised on high ground so that the elegance of its proportions and the effects of light on its surfaces might be viewed from all angles.Helen Gardner, pp. 126-132 Nikolaus Pevsner refers to "the plastic shape of the Greek temple ... placed before us with a physical presence more intense, more alive than that of any later building"Nikolaus Pevsner, An Outline of European Architecture, p. 19 The formal vocabulary of ancient Greek architecture, in particular the division of architectural style into three defined orders: the Doric Order, the Ionic Order and the Corinthian Order, was to have profound effect on Western architecture of later periods. The architecture of ancient Rome grew out of that of Greece and maintained its influence in Italy unbroken until the present day. From the Renaissance, revivals of Classicism have kept alive not only the precise forms and ordered details of Greek architecture, but also its concept of architectural beauty based on balance and proportion. The successive styles of Neoclassical architecture and Greek Revival architecture followed and adapted Ancient Greek styles closely. Domestic buildings The Greek word for the family or household, oikos, is also the name for the house. Houses followed several different types. It is probable that many of the earliest houses were simple structures of two rooms, with an open porch or "pronaos" above which rose a low pitched gable or pediment.Banister Fletcher pp. 93-97 This form is thought to have contributed to temple architecture. The construction of many houses employed walls of sun dried clay bricks or wooden framework filled with fibrous material such as straw or seaweed covered with clay or plaster, on a base of stone which protected the more vulnerable elements from damp.John Boardman, pp. 10-14 The roofs were probably of thatch with eaves which overhung the permeable walls. Many larger houses, such as those at Delos, were built of stone and plastered. The roofing material for substantial house was tile. Houses of the wealthy had mosaic floors and demonstrated the Classical style. Many houses centered on a wide passage or "pasta" which ran the length of the house and opened at one side onto a small courtyard which admitted light and air. Larger houses had a fully developed peristyle courtyard at the center, with the rooms arranged around it. Some houses had an upper floor which appears to have been reserved for the use of the women of the family.Banister Fletcher, pp 151-153 City houses were built with adjoining walls and were divided into small blocks by narrow streets. Shops were sometimes located in the rooms towards the street. City houses were inward-facing, with major openings looking onto the central courtyard, rather than the street.Banister Fletcher pp. 93-97 References Category:1st century Category:Pre-18th century Category:Before the Common Era Category:Ancient Greek architecture Category:Architectural history Category:Ancient history